On December 2, 2025, the Keio Institute of East Asian Studies (KIEAS) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Institute for National Security Strategy (INSS), a research institute under the South Korean government. INSS President Kim Sung-bae visited the Mita Campus and held an MOU signing ceremony with Junya Nishino, Director of the Keio Institute of East Asian Studies (KIEAS).
The Institute for National Security Strategy is one of South Korea's leading research institutions for the analysis of international affairs and the situation in East Asia. By strengthening research exchange with the institute, Keio University expects to improve the quality of its East Asian studies and expand its research exchange network with South Korean research institutions.
The Keio Institute of East Asian Studies (KIEAS) has been working to build a network of research exchanges with overseas research institutions. In South Korea, it also signed an MOU with the Dongseo University Institute of East Asian Studies in Busan in December 2023.
While there was a period when exchanges with overseas research institutions stagnated due to restrictions on direct travel caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the institute is currently working to revitalize international exchanges again. For example, in the 2024 academic year, it co-hosted public international symposia with the Weatherhead East Asian Institute at Columbia University and the Institute for Korean Studies at George Washington University, respectively. Furthermore, in December 2025, the 2025 annual meeting of the "International Consortium for Contemporary Chinese Studies," comprised of Chinese research institutions located at universities in East Asia, North America, and Oceania, was held at the Mita Campus.
The Keio Institute of East Asian Studies (KIEAS) will continue to strive for qualitative improvements in research and the expansion of its exchange network through research exchanges with overseas institutions.
Photography: Aki Takematsu